Loading mechanism for guns



06L 1953 H. w. ALDRIN ET AL 7 LOADING MECHANISM FOR GUNS Filed Oct. 18, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN VE N TORS HENRY WILHELM ALDR/N SVEN GUNNAR GERD/ ATTORNEY Oct. 13, 1953 w ALDRlN ET AL 2,655,079

LOADING MECHANISM FOR GUNS Filed OCT. 18, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VE N 70/73 HENRY W/LHELM ALDR/N SVEN GUN/VAR GE DIN ATTORNEY Oct. 13, 1953 H. w. ALDRiN ET AL 2,655,079

LOADING MECHANISM FOR GUNS Filed Oct. 18. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet s INVENTORS HENRY W/LHELM ALDR/N SVEN GUNNAR GE DIN M A T TORNEY Patented Oct. 13, 1953 LOADING MECHANISM FOR GUNS Henry Wilhelm Aldrin and Sven Gunnar Gerdin,

Borers, Sweden, assignors to Aktiebolaget Bofors, Bofors, Sweden, a joint-stock company of Sweden Application October 18, 1949, Serial No. 121,914 In Sweden March 23, 1949 14 Claims.

This invention relates to loading mechanism for guns and is particularly directed to means for rapidly loading projectiles from an ammunition hoist or the like successively into a gun at any elevation of the latter to facilitate promotion of a high rate of fire.

80 called medium and heavy guns, particularly those mounted in movable turrets as on board naval vessels, are customarily provided with auxiliary mechanism including for each gun an ammunition hoist adapted to deliver projectiles from a subjacent magazine or other compartment to the vicinity of the gun; to transfer the projectile from the hoist to the gun breech it therefore must be moved from the hoist, in which its longitudinal axis is substantially vertical, and brought to a position for ramming into the gun and thus in alignment with its bore, which may be at substantially any angle from nearly vertical to horizontal or even below horizontal depending on the elevation required to train the gun on its target.

Modern guns of the character to which the invention relates are usually supplied with ammunition in the form of cartridges comprising both the projectile and the propellent charge and as automatic devices have been developed for ramming and firing the gun and thereafter ejecting the empty cartridge case in a very short period of time, the rapidity with which successive rounds can be fired is determined to a large extent by the speed of transfer of the cartridges from the ammunition hoist to the ramming mechanism. In many instances this transfer is efiected manually by the gun crew although mechanisms have been proposed for accomplishing it automatically and when properly operating give the gun a comparatively high rate of fire. But these mechanisms are extremely complicated, expensive to construct and maintain and difilcult to restore to effective operative condition when damaged.

In accordance with the present invention however, automatic gun loading mechanism is provided which include a tubular loading tray supported from arms pivoted coaxiall'y with the gun trunnions and adapted to swing between a position aligned with the ammunition hoist and one aligned with the gun breech, together with locking elements at the limit of its travel for holding it in each or said positions for appropriate periods during the cycle of operations and means for imparting to the tray at either of such positions sullicient impetus to carry it to the other whether it be supporting a cartridge to be loaded into the gun or is being returned after the loading to position for receiving the succeeding one from the ammunition hoist, the tray swinging freely to the respective limit positions after having had the requisite impetus imparted to it adjacent the other.

It is therefore a principal object of the invention to provide mechanism which is substantially automatic in operation and operative to convey cartridges successively and with great rapidity from an ammunition hoist into alignment with the axis of the gun breech and thus in position to be acted upon by the ramming mechanism.

A further object is to provide mechanism of this character operative at any elevation of the gun barrel and which therefore permits the gun to be set at a desired elevation for the firing of a plurality of rounds and a corresponding number of cartridges fed successively to it for firing without changing that elevation.

Other objects, purposes and advantages of the invention will hereafter more fully appear or will be understood from the following description of one embodiment of it illustrated in the accompanying drawings in operative association with a gun and ammunition hoist therefor of which only as much is illustrated as is required for adequate comprehension of the invention.

In the said drawings Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical section of the gun loading mechanism showing the cartridge loading tray in a position aligned with the ammunition hoist after having received a cartridge therefrom preparatory to transferring it to ramming position.

Fig. 2 is a corresponding section showing the loading tray supporting the cartridge in alignment with the gun barrel adjacent the ramming mechanism preparatory to ramming.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 3--3 in Fig. 2 showing certain details of the loading tray actuating mechanism illustrated in the preceding figures.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section on the line 5-4 inFig, 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section through the recoil jacket of the gun, and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal section on the line 8-6 in Fig. 5.

Fig. '7 on a smaller scale is a fragmentary largely diagrammatic side elevation, partly in vertical section, showing a naval gun turret containing the gun and hoist with the said gun loading mechanism in operative relation thereto but with certain usual auxiliary apparatus omitted.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the gun, generally designated G, is mounted for elevational motion about a horizontal axis on trunnions T in the customary way and a generally cylindrical loading tray I supported by arms 2 is arranged to swing on pivots 3 coincident with the trunnion axis between the positions shown in Figs. 1 and 2 or between the former and any other position generally com-' parable to the latter but corresponding to a different elevation of the gun. Thus when in its lowermost or vertical position (Fig. 1) the tray is aligned with the upper end of a tubular casing of the ammunition hoist within which through the instrumentality of a vertically reciprocable trigger it cartridges 0, C etc. are successively delivered to the top of the hoist for projection into the loading tray. The trigger 6 of the hoist is actuated by a mechanism (not shown) which constitutes no part of the present invention, the

latter being directed more particularly to the loading tray I which receives the cartridge after it has been elevated to the maximum extent within the capacity of the trigger 6 and the actuating mechanism which in cooperation with the tray effects transfer of the cartridges successively from the top of the hoist to position to be acted upon by the ramming mechanism of the gun.

The tray I is provided with spring pressed locking bolts 9 so arranged that after a cartridge has been projected into the tray by the trigger 6 and the flange on its case has initially depressed, and then passed beyond, the bolts, the latter spring outwardly below the flange to provide supports for the cartridge when the trigger 6 is subsequently retracted downward along the hoist.

To prevent the cartridge from lifting upon a quick retardation of the hoist as the cartridge is moving upwardly, a latch II) movable vertically in the hoist with the trigger I5 is provided, this latch when projected being adapted to overlie the cartridge flange F. The latch is actuated by spring pressed arm I2 engageable with a detent I3 on the hoist housing in such manner that it is retracted from above the cartridge flange as the hoist nears the end of its upward stroke and slightly before it operates to actuate mechanism to release the tray for transfer thereby of the cartridge to the ramming mechanism as will hereafter be explained.

To swing the tray upwardly about its pivots 3 after it has received a cartridge and the trigger 3 has transferred the weight of the latter to the bolts 9 mechanism now to be described is normally brought into play automatically, the stored energy of a loaded spring or other equivalent mechanism being released to act upon the tray through a pivoted lifting arm I5 when a pair of catches I6 are disengaged from locking lugs I! which project outwardly from the sides of the tray. The catches I3 may be actuated from a releasing bolt IS through a lever arm I9 and'link 23, and the ammunition hoist provided with a lug (not shown) movable with the trigger 6 so that upon the latter attaining substantially the highest point in its travel and thus having fully projected a cartridge into the tray, the lug moves the plunger 8 to raise the catches I8 from engagement with the locking lugs against the bias of springs 2| which normally hold the catches depressed.

Release of the catches from the lugs ll frees the tray for swinging movement about the axis of pivots 3 and into alignment with the gun bar rel under impetus supplied through lifting arm I5 from any suitable energy source. In the embodiment of the invention herein shown and described the actuating means for arm [5 include a lever 23 and link 24, the latter pivoted to plunger rod 25 the lower end of which is adapted to be releasably secured by spring catches 23 within a spring cylinder 2'! to a piston 23 engaged by one end of a compression spring 29 in the cylinder.

For compressing or loading the spring 23 there is provided a pair of gears 30 meshing with racks 3| secured to the piston 28 and projecting outwardly through suitable slots in the walls of the cylinder 21, the gears 30 being actuated by means (not shown) connected with the hoist mechanism whereby when the hoist trigger 3 is retracted after having delivered a cartridge to the loading tray the gears 30 are rotated to move the racks and hence the piston 28 in the direction to'oompress the spring 23.

It will be appreciated, however, that any means other than those just described which are adapted to store and at the proper time release the energy requisite for swinging the loading tray I upwardly to ramming position (Fig. 2) from that (Fig. 1) in which it receives the cartridge may be employed if preferred.

Mechanism is also provided for controlling the travel of arm It in correspondence with the elevation of the'gun. Thus adjacent the lower end of the cylinder 2! and projecting into a tubular extension sleeve 32 secured to the corresponding extremity of the rod 25 is mounted a plunger 33 having at its upper end a domed head entering the sleeve, the other end of the rod being secured to a lug 34 carried by a movable gear rack 35 with which a gear segment 36 is in mesh. This gear segment is actuated by a rod 3? and crank 38 through a cam follower 39 by a rotatable cam 43 and controls the position of plunger 33 in the cylinder 27 to release the piston 28 from rod 25 by tripping catches 26 in accordance with the elevational setting of the gun at the moment the tray isreleased from catches It. The cam ii! is thus actuated by a train of gears ii, t2 and 43 from a gear segment 45 coaxial with the gun trunnions and fixed to the gun so as to move therewith and correspondingly correlate the position of plunger 33 in cylinder 2'! with the gun elevation, the plunger occupying a higher position in the cylinder when the gun is elevated and a lower position when the gun is depressed.

A recoil jacket 46 afiixed to the gun contains the ramming mechanism hereafter to be described and into alignment with which the arm I5 swings the tray I when the latter is released, and catches 48 on the sides of the tray are positioned to engage catch lugs 49 carried by the recoil jacket when the tray has been swung upwardly sufficiently to bring the cartridge it carries to ramming position. The ramming mechanism may be of any suitable construction, that shown in the drawings including a spring 5I' disposed in a cylinder 52 operative to actuate a piston rod 53 the head 54 of which carries a feeding catch 55 adapted to engage the base of a cartridge in the raised loading tray and project it into the gun upon release of the head 54 by tripping of a lever detent 55 when a boss 57 on the tray actuates the detent at the end of the upward travel of the former, means (not shown) being provided for restoring the rammer to its initial position afterit has rammed one cartridge into the gun and preparatory to the loading; of a, succeeding round. In Fig. 2 the detent- W has been tripped but the cooked orloaded spring 51 has not yet acted on the rammer.

As the tray is swung into ramming position it also engages a trigger arm iflactuating a crank. lever Bil-biased by-bolt 52 which loads a spring- 63 and cushions the shock incident to arresting the upward swing'of the tray.

When the rammer released, projecting a cartridge through the: tray toward the gun, the flange on the cartridge case, during passage of the latter into the gun, actuates the catches 68' on the tray to disengage them from the catch lugs 49. on therecoil jacket and the spring 63 through the boltt2, crank 61!: and arm 58 thereupon acts upon the now empty tray to swing it in the op- Dflsite direction and restore it to alignment with the; ammunition hoist, the force of gravity materiallyaiding' this return when the gun is. at low elevationand to. alesser degree when the gun is raised.

Mention has been made, of automatic control oi the iorce applied to the loading tray for-raising it'to ramming-positionin correspondence with the. elevation of the gun since. less. is required as the elevation of the gun is increased, and some further reference thereto will more, fully disclose the operation of. the: mechanism by which this control is effected. Thus as has been explained, the. rod 2.5v carrying at, its extremity tubular extension 32 reciprocates in. the cylinder 21. in correspondence with the oscillatory movement of the liftin lever I 5,v thelatter being actuated by the. rod. 25 under the influence of spring 29! to. raise the tray, and usually by the tray itselfto raise the red. as the tray is lowered to cartridge receiving position. The tubular extension 32, provided with notches. or slots 32" adapted to receive. the catches 26-. on the piston, 28, is secured, to and: moves with the rod 25 whenever the latter moves. and when the motive force is being derivedfrom the spring 29 it is. transmitted through the; sleeve to the rod by engagement of the catches 26. in. these slots locking the piston and sleeve together as a unit.

However during the downward travel; of the. piston, carrying with it the. sleeve, 32. and rod. 25., as the loading tray is. being swung to ramming. position, when the catches 2.6 engage the doomed. head of plunger 3.3. they are forced outwardly thereby and become disengaged from the slots 32', allowing the piston. 28. to complete its travel independently of. the rod 25 while the latter is prevented by the head of the plunger from fur ther movement with the piston.

It is thus apparent the positioning of the plunger 33 controls the extent of travel of the arm l5 under the influence of spring 29. and. as the position of the plunger corresponds directly to the gun elevation the arm l5 moves through a longer or shorter arc depending on whether the. gun is at a high or a low elevation.

During the recovery operation after ramming of a cartridge and release of the tray from the recoil jacket 46 the tray i e-engages th arm i5 and in returning to vertical position above the hoist is again secured by engagement of) lugs H under latches I6. This motion of the tray also causes the arm I5 to raise the rod 25 in cylinder 21, if it has not. already been so raised by operation of the hoist which in retracting the trigger 6 to engage a succeeding cartridge rotates the gears 30 to raise the piston 28. In either event, when the tray has been restored to vertical position and the piston 28 raised by the hoist to load the spring 29, the catches 26 are engaged in slots at" of time :2 to mm 1061; the sleeve and hence the rod 25 to the piston for movement therewith in loading the succeeding round. It is therefore immaterial whether raising of the rod 25 effected by return of the tray through arm 15 or on loading or the spring 29 by the piston 28, although it is usually by the former since the trayv after one cart-ridge has been rammed into the gun, quickly returns to position for receiving a succeeding one while the hoist may not be retracted for lifting the succeeding cartridge until some time after the preceding one has been rammed in the gun and the latter discharged.

Usually the travel of the arm IE to raise the tray is effected with sufficient force and speed to make it unnecessary that it continue to engage the tray until the latter has reached ramming position, the momentum acquired by the tray and cartridge during initial upward movement normany being adequate to carry them to the latter position after further travel of the arm i5 has been arrested by the interposition of plunger 33 in the path of rod 25"; the mechanism which con" trolsv the position of plunger 33 is therefore do sirably designed and adjusted with this in view. From what has been said it will be evident that the mechanism herein described is designed for use with a gun the barrel of which is mounted for vertical elevational movement about relatively horizontal trunnions whose axis extends normal to the axis of the gun barrel; as such guns are generally known no more specific description of one typical of them is required. Likewise the. ammunition hoist may be of any suitable character including a generally vertical passageway referred to as. the hoist shaft through which by suitable mechanism (not shown) the cartridges from the ammunition magazine are. successively delivered to the tray 1, the hoist mechanism: itself comprising no part orthe invention and being in the same category with the. gun and its t-runnicns in this respect, It will further be. reco nized that after a cartridge has been. delivered through the hoist shaft to the tray I and deposited on the locking bolts 9 which support it when in the position illustrated in Fig. 1, release of the tray by disengagement of the catches Hi from the locking u s I'lpon partialretraction. of the hoist mechanism allows the lifting arm I5 to swing the tray upwardly in an arcuate. path about the pivots 3 and thus carry the cartridge in the tray to the ramming mechanism. at the. position illustrated in. Fig 2... Here the. tray is retained, through engagement of thecatches 4.8 with catch lugs 49 onv the gun recoil jacket, in alignment with the bore of the gun barrel, into which the cartridge is projected upon actuation of the ramming mochabism. The cartridge as it moves toward th barrel releases the catches 48 and. the tray is thereupon returned thi'oue'h the action of spring and trigger arm 58 to alignment with the hoist shaft for reception, of the next following cartridge, full retraction of the hoist to engage latter causing the spring 29. to be again compressed through the action. of the gears 35 and racks 31.

Control of the force which the. spring 29 exerts against the plunger rod 25 in raising the tray in accordance with the elevation of the gun. has been fully described but it may be repeated that the tray obviously requires greater force for its projection to ramming position when the gun is at lowelevation and the ramming mechanism there fore disposed at a relatively large angle to the ammunition hoist than when the elevation of the un is greater and the angle between the ramgun assembly as a whole, including its accessory apparatus, will readily occur to those skilled in' the art and may be mad if desired without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, we claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States:

1. In loading mechanism for a gun comprising a gun barrel, trunnions supporting the bar rel for elevational movement about a horizontal. axis and a vertical hoist for delivering a pro-- jectile to a position adjacent the barrel, the combination with said gun of a loading tray forv receiving a projectile from the hoist and supporting it in said position, means supporting the:

tray for movement in an arcuate path in the plane of said elevational movement and about an axis coincident with said horizontal axis and means for moving the tray in said path to thereby trans-' fer a projectile in the tray from said position to one substantially in axial alignment with the barrel.

2 Means for transferring ammunition from an ammunition hoist to a trunnioned-barrel guncomprising a loading tray movable into axial alignment with the hoist to receive a projectile therefrom, means supporting the tray for oscillatory motion about an axis coincident with that of gun trunnions and in the plane of elevational motion of the gun, means carried by the tray for supporting a projectile therein in radially spaced relation to the trunnion axis and means for swinging the tray from axial alignment with the hoist to axial alignment with the gun barrel whatever be the angular position of the gun within thelimits of said elevational motion.

3. Means for transferring a projectile from a vertical ammunition hoist to a position appro priate for ramming into a trunnioned-barrel gun comprising a loading tray, means supporting the tray for movement about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions in an arcuate path re-- mote from said axis, means engageable with the tray operative to project it along said path from substantial axial alignment with the hoist to substantial axial alignment with the gun barrel, and means operative to arrest the action of said last mentioned means during movement of the tray along said path.

4. In means for loading a projectile into a trunnioned-barrel gun from an ammunition hoist disposed adjacent thereto, a substantially tubular loading tray, means supporting the tray for movement in an arcuate path about an axis coindent with the gun trunnion axis, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray operative to impart thereto an impetus to move the tray along said path from a position axially aligned with the ammunition hoist to one in axial alignment with the gun barrel, actuating means for said arm and means for arresting movement of the arm to thereby disengage it from the tray during said movement of the tray.

5. In means for loading a projectile into a trunnioned-barrel gun from an ammunition hoist disposed adjacent thereto, a substantially tubular loading tray, means supporting the tray for movement in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray operative to impart an impetus thereto to swing the tray from a position axially aligned with the hoist to one in axial alignment with the gun barrel, energy storing means biasing the arm in a direction to impart said impetus to the tray and releasable means for securing the tray in the first position.

6. In means for loading a projectile into a trunnioned-barrel gun from an ammunition hoist, a substantially tubular loading tray, means supporting the tray for movement in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray operative to impart to it an impetus to swing the tray in said path from substantially vertical axial alignment with the hoist to axial alignment with the gun barrel at an angle to the vertical, energy storing means biasing the arm in a direction to so swing the tray, and means controlling the action or said energy storing means in correspondence with the vertical angularity of the gun barrel to thereby limit in accordance with said angle the amplitude of movement of the arm.

7. In means for loading a projectile into a trunnioned-barrel gun from an ammunition hoist, a substantially tubular loading tray, means supporting the tray for movement in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray operative to impart to it an impetus to swing the tray from substantially vertical axial alignment with the ammunition hoist to axial alignment with the gun barrel and means for actuating the arm including a rod interconnected therewith, a compression spring surrounding the rod, an abutment engaging the spring and slidable relatively to the rod, releasable means operative to interlock the abutment and rod together for unitary movement under the influence of the spring and means for actuating said releasable means to unlock the abutment from the rod during such movement and to simultaneously arrest movement of the rod under the influence of the spring to thereby disengage the arm from the tray.

8. In loading mechanism for a trunnioned-barrel gun, a loading tray adapted to receive and support a projectile for the gun, means supporting the tray for oscillation in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions and in the plane of elevational motion of the gun, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray for imparting thereto a swinging movement in said path from substantially vertical position to a position angular to the vertical, energy storing means interconnectable with the arm for moving it about its pivot, releasable means for interconnecting the energy storing means with said arm and means for actuating said releasable means tointerrupt said interconnection during travel of the arm at a point determined by the elevation of the gun.

9. In loading mechanism for a trunnioned-barrel gun, a tray for transferring from one position to another a projectile received by the tray, means supporting the tray for oscillation in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions and in the plane of elevational motion or the gun, means for imparting to the tray a swinging movement in said path towards the second position', interengageable means carried respectively by the tray and the gun for releasably holding the tray in the second of said positions after it has been swung thereto and projectile-actuated means for releasing said interengageable means.

10. In loading mechanism for a trunnionedbarrel gun, a tray for transferring from one position to another a projectile received by the tray, means supporting the tray for oscillation in an arcuate path about an axis coincident with that of the gun trunnions and in the plane of elevational motion of the gun, a pivoted arm engageable with the tray for imparting thereto a swinging movement in said path towards the second of said positions, means for actuating the arm, energy storing means disposed adjacent said second position including means engageable by the tray operative to arrest motion of the tray when it attains substantially said second position, latching mechanism for releasably securing the tray in said second position and projectileactuated releasing means therefor.

11. In means for transferring projectiles successively from a substantially vertical ammunition hoist to a position angular to the vertical in alignment with the bore of a trunnioned-barrel gun, a loading tray operative to receive and support remote from the gun trunnion axis a projectile delivered to the tray by the hoist, means supporting the tray for movement about an axis coincident with said trunnion axis in the plane of elevational movement of the gun and means for moving the tray from substantial axial alignment with the hoist to said position for projection of a projectile from the tray into the gun.

12. In means for transferring projectiles successively from a substantially vertical ammunition hoist to position adjacent a trunnioned-barrel gun having its barrel disposed at an angle to the vertical in a plane containing the vertical axis of the hoist, a loading tray operative to receive and support remote from the gun trunnion axis a projectile delivered to the tray by the hoist, means supporting the tray for movement in said plane about an axis coincident with said trunnion axis, and means for moving the tray in an arcuate path in said plane from substantial axial alignment with the hoist to substantial axial alignment with the gun barrel irrespective of its angular elevation to thereby position a projectile in the tray for projection directly therefrom into the gun, said last mentioned means including an arm pivoted for movement about an axis parallel to but remote from said trunnion axis and engageable with the tray when the latter is aligned with the hoist and yielding means for moving the arm in one direction about its axis while in engagement with the tray.

13. In projectile transferring means as defined in claim 12 means for interrupting movement of the arm during movement of the tray whereby the tray attains substantial alignment with said barrel by virtue of the momentum imparted it by the arm.

1 1. In projectile transferring means as defined in claim 12 means for interrupting movement of the arm while the tray is moving toward said alignment with the barrel whereby the tray attains said position by virtue of the momentum imparted thereto by the arm and means for controlling the amplitude of travel of the arm in correspondence with the angle of the gun to the vertical.

HENRY WILHELM ALDRIN. SVEN GUNNAR GERDIN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,494,591 Dawson et al May 20, 1924 1,753,850 Courseulles Apr. 8, 1930 2,004,856 Daum June 11, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 333,661 Germany Mar. 2, 1921 628,772 Great Britain Sept. 5, 1949 706,222 Germany May 21, 1941 

